Saudis Announce Start of Yemen Pause, Say Overflights to Continue

Six weeks into their aerial campaign, and after 48-hours of severe escalation, Saudi Arabia announced a temporary halt to their airstrikes against Yemen, the beginning of what they say will be a five-day humanitarian pause.

There is skepticism, but also a lot of hope among Yemeni civilians, who are hoping their cities won’t be bombed over the next few days, and hoping even more that the Saudi naval blockade will begin allowing humanitarian aid into the country.

While fighting picked up particularly along the border in the hours leading up to the 11 pm deadline, residents in Yemeni cities have reported no incidents in the first couple of hours since.

Saudi military commanders say that despite the pause, they will continue overflights of Yemen for surveillance purposes, and will resume strikes if they believe the Houthis are violating the terms of the deal, which includes that none of their troops move for the next five days.